Meteorite disappears from party in Keys

Associated Press
12:22 PM EST, February 7, 2008

SUMMERLAND KEY - A space rock is missing from the Florida Keys.

The Monroe County Sheriff's Office says a meteorite was stolen sometime between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning from a display at a gathering of amateur astronomers on West Summerland Key.

The meteorite is worth $10,000 and weighs about 99 grams. It's greenish-brown with crystals. One side of it has a cut.

The meteorite was on display at the Winter Star Party by a vendor from Pennsylvania. Authorities say the vendor had it in an unlocked case covered with a tarp.

The gathering is hosted by Miami's Southern Cross Astronomical Society.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/mia...0,387554.story

I was in the FL Keys last week to do some night fishing. It's a good place to do some sky watching. Something cool and mysterious about being out in the ocean at night. Got see alot more stars than I normally do. Especially since it was a crescent moon.

Bummer.

Mildly offensive title, even though I am assuming it is purely tongue-in-cheek.

I am of the opinion Astronomers as a class are amoung the most trustworthy of all people I associate with.

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jwj

It's ok not to know. We should try harder to find out.

Apparently, you've never found a planet and then have the others redefine it out from under you. ;-)

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"What you think you thought you saw you did not see." Agent J, MiB - Manhatten Bureau

So, no alibi then?

AFAIK, nobody was deceptive about it. They came right out and said they wanted to redefine your planet -- whether you liked it or not.

Trustworthy, but bullies

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Fiction has to be plausible. Reality is under no such constraint.

But four percent of a group of 10,000 claimed to speak on behalf of the whole group, did so in a very haphazard and controversial process, and now expects the world to take their definition as gospel truth. It's just another example of a small group behaving badly in a way that wrongly makes the whole profession look bad.

How did figure out the $10K price tag?

i'd wager that's how much insurance they had on it.

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"blacker than the blackest black... times infinity."- Nathan Explosion
The.. Best.. Thread..Ever...

"Now who the heck would want to steal a rock?"
-Some mystery I read where a meteor was stolen from a museum.

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"If you think the LHC will create black holes, you might as well believe Hobbits are at the bottom of your garden."- Dr. Mike Inglis
Rovers forever! - ToSeek
"Carl Sagan sent a message to ET,
Neil Armstrong walked in the Sea of Tranquility
Steve Squyers built Spirit and Opportunity
Dan Haylen upchucked in zero gravity." -Brent Simon, The Space Camp Song

The thing that surprises me the most is that this guy left this thing unsecured around a group of people who would drool over the opportunity to possess such a prize. For one, I wouldn't trust a group of <fill in the blank> around anything worth $10,000 and just leave it laying around. Second, a meteorite may be more valuable to an astronomy geek than the actual cash value (my precious) and so there is even more temptation. Combine the fact that the meteorite was worth $10,000 and you have a powerful incentive for individuals with weak morals to step over the line.

I'm not saying the guy deserved to be ripped off, but he shouldn't have been too surprised when it happened.

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The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible.

Arthur C. Clarke

The Brain Science Podcast

The evidence here would indicate that an appropriate generalization might be that, if anything. Astronomers are passionate about their pursuit.

Kind regards
Matt

Astronomers are passionate about their pursuit...

to the point of being untrustworthy? Is this left to be implied or is it deliberately left off to deceive?

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The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible.

Arthur C. Clarke

The Brain Science Podcast

astronomers are people. sometimes, they get together in groups.
and, amongst any group of people, there are the "bad seeds".

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"blacker than the blackest black... times infinity."- Nathan Explosion
The.. Best.. Thread..Ever...

Yeah, see... That's what I'm thinking.

"Astronomers" didn't steal it. One individual (most likely) did.

Many scientists are 'collectors' of some sort, and a meteorite is certainly a collectable item.

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plenty of woo, at the hotel hoagaland...

No deception intended. Passion can lead equally to great insights or sadly misguided actions. I don't think I have personally met an astronomer that I could describe as dishonest but to err is human.

Kind regards
Matt

Wow, you guys haven't been to the semi-precious gem site in a while have you?

Only ten grand? For a 99 gram meteor with green mineral inclusions? You could cut that thing into four pieces and sell each one for that price.

(Oh, and never underestimate the power of certain recreational drugs. Astronomers are just as likely to become thievin' junkies as anybody else. Education doesn't protect you from that. You never saw that documentary of M.D's who were I.V. drug users?)

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Gimme a minute to read through Jay's latest observations...

My precious.......that floored me.

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This whole internet thing is probably not a passing fad.-Ronald Brak
While speech might be free, consequences cost.-Doodler

I've left a few thousand dollars worth of astronomical equipment outside my tent at star parties numberous times and never had anything go missing. Granted my stuff is nowhere near "the best" but it's certainly not the worst you could have. I think a key to this story is that it occured in the Keys, hardly a secluded location. Every star party I've ever been to has been far away from populated towns, let alone tourist destinations. I bet that the person who took it wasn't there for the star party in the first place. Green with crystals you say? I think it's pretty obvious who the real culprit is - Lex Luthor lol.